The three Sharks gold-medal forwards finally held a reunion Sunday. They met at the net for the winning goal. High fives and party favors were exchanged.

That is, if by "party favors," you mean a two-games-to-none lead over the Detroit Red Wings in this second-round series — plus a very encouraging sign that the Sharks' offensive engine no longer has just one gear, with the name of "Joe Pavelski" on the stick shift.

Pavelski was again a constant hockey hammer in the 4-3 comeback victory over Detroit at HP Pavilion and scored two goals in the process. But with the score 3-3 as the third-period clock wound down to under eight minutes, the Sharks needed something more.

And wouldn't you know it? Along came the guys who were supposed to provide the something.

"You know, I don't consider myself a goal scorer," said Joe Thornton, who was able to score it, anyway.

Thornton, Dany Heatley and Patrick Marleau had been the top scoring line throughout the season. They had skated together for Canada's Olympic team. They were called the Big Three.

"It's always nice to play with those two guys," Heatley said Sunday night in a happy Sharks locker room.

No doubt. Problem was, the results had not been so nice until Sunday. In the first seven games of the playoffs, the Big Three had been the Much Less Awesome Than Expected Three. Sharks coach Todd McLellan had even broken them up in the first round, playing them with different line partners.

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Then, last Thursday before Game 1 against Detroit, Marleau came down with the flu and did not play in the Sharks' victory. McLellan therefore kept the Big Three apart at the start of Sunday's game and through the first two periods. Then, just before the start of the third, with the Sharks trailing by a goal and the offense stagnating, McLellan informed the three they would be taking the opening faceoff together.

"I thought that it would be a big challenge for them," explained McLellan, using an interesting phrase.

If the challenge was for the Big Three to show they could roll out some productive shifts against Detroit's top line centered by Pavel Datsyuk, you'd have to say the challenge was met. The Sharks scored their tying goal on a five-on-three power play with Thornton feeding the puck into the crease, where Pavelski whacked it in. But the game winner happened in a five-on-five situation when the Sharks received a lucky break and the Big Three pounced.

The lucky break occurred when Detroit defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom attempted a slap shot from the left point. But when his stick hit the ice before making contact with the puck, the stick shattered. Heatley, who had been in position to block the puck, immediately poked it away and charged up the ice with a stickless Lidstrom trailing far behind.

Meanwhile, Thornton was on the other side of the ice and began motoring the other way himself. It wound up as a two-on-one rush against Detroit's Brian Rafalski — and quickly became a three-on-one as Marleau sped up the middle. Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard stayed focused on the puck, which was on Heatley's stick. After a quick thought about passing, Heatley shot.

Howard stopped the puck. But all night long, the rookie goalie had been giving up juicy rebounds on which the Sharks couldn't capitalize. This time, the puck kicked out front and off Rafalski's skate over to Thornton, who flipped it into the net.

"I still don't know if it was a three-on-one or a two-on-one," said Thornton, who when asked exactly how he got to the doorstep said: "I have no idea."

It doesn't matter. Yes, the Sharks got a great bounce — but the good teams and the good lines are supposed to take advantage of those bounces. Thornton and Heatley had noticeable bounce in Sunday's game. And while Marleau still looks like a guy recovering from the flu, he did throw himself around and slam some Wings into the boards. Marleau has more to show. But it's at least a start.

"You need everybody to win," Heatley said. "And as far as any pressure goes, we put enough pressure on ourselves."

This series isn't close to being over as it heads to Detroit. Our beloved Los Tiburones have wasted two-games-to-none leads in previous playoff years and gone on to lose — most recently against Edmonton in 2006. The Red Wings have rallied from two-games-to-none deficits numerous times to win series.

Yet you did get the feeling Sunday night that a hurdle may have been crossed. It's not often that the Red Wings blow leads twice in the same game. With the Big Pavelski and the Big Three both firing away, the Sharks have a Big Chance here. More gold medal reunions in the crease would be most welcome.